Wim Wenders is a bit of a madman. I mean that in the best way possible, obviously. Back in 1987, he gave us Wings of Desire, a monochrome masterpiece about angels wandering a divided Berlin. It was quiet. It was poetic. It was, for many, a perfect film that didn't need a follow-up. But then the Wall fell. History shifted overnight, and suddenly, the angels had a new world to navigate. That’s how we ended up with Stay Faraway, So Close!, a movie that is arguably messier, louder, and way more chaotic than its predecessor, yet remains one of the most soul-stirring pieces of 90s cinema.
Honestly, sequels to arthouse hits usually fail. They feel like cash grabs or redundant retreads. This one is different because it feels like a fever dream. Released in 1993, it didn't just try to recapture the magic; it tried to interrogate what happens when the "magic" has to deal with the gritty, corrupt reality of a reunited Germany. It’s a film about falling—literally and figuratively.
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Why Cassiel’s Story Hits Differently Now
In the first movie, Damiel (played by the legendary Bruno Ganz) chooses to become human for love. It’s romantic. It’s sweet. But Stay Faraway, So Close! follows Cassiel, played by Otto Sander, who makes the jump not out of a grand romantic gesture, but out of a desperate, split-second impulse to save a dying child.
He saves her. But the cost is his divinity.
Cassiel's journey is a gut-punch. Unlike Damiel, who found a community and a craft, Cassiel ends up homeless. He’s a drunk. He’s exploited by a shady businessman named Emit Flesti (played by Willem Dafoe, who is basically playing "Time" spelled backward). This isn't a "happily ever after" for an angel. It’s a grueling look at how the world treats the vulnerable. You’ve got this celestial being who used to hear the thoughts of everyone in the city, and now he’s just another guy shouting at the wind in a subway station. It’s heartbreaking.
The Weirdness of the 1993 Berlin Setting
Berlin in the early 90s was a construction site of the soul. The movie captures this perfectly. You see the transition from the grainy, artistic black-and-white cinematography to the harsh, garish colors of the post-Cold War era. It’s intentional. The cinematographer, Jürgen Jürges, stepped in for the legendary Henri Alekan (though Alekan has a cameo!), and the visual shift tells the story of a city trying to find its identity.
- The film features cameos that make no sense on paper but work on screen.
- Mikhail Gorbachev appears as himself, sitting in a room, pondering life. It’s surreal.
- Lou Reed shows up. He’s just... Lou Reed.
- The soundtrack is anchored by U2, whose song "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" became more famous than the movie itself for a lot of people.
Wenders wasn't just making a movie; he was documenting a vibe. A vibe of "what now?" That’s the core of the film. The Wall is gone, the angels are falling, and the gangsters are moving in. It’s a heist movie, a spiritual drama, and a political documentary all smashed into one.
Addressing the "Messy" Criticism
Critics at the time were kind of mean about it. They called it bloated. They said it lacked the purity of the first film. They aren't entirely wrong—the plot involving a cache of illegal weapons and a boat chase feels like it belongs in a different movie.
But here’s the thing: life is bloated.
If Wings of Desire was about the ideal of humanity, Stay Faraway, So Close! is about the reality of it. It’s about the fact that being human is confusing and often involves dealing with people you don't like. The "messiness" is the point. Cassiel struggles because the world is no longer a place of quiet contemplation; it’s a place of noise and commerce.
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Willem Dafoe as Emit Flesti
We have to talk about Dafoe. He plays this trickster figure, Emit Flesti. Is he the devil? Is he just time personified? He’s the one who reminds Cassiel that for humans, time is a commodity. "You have no time!" he shouts. In the angelic realm, they had eternity. On earth, they have a ticking clock.
Dafoe brings this kinetic, twitchy energy that balances Otto Sander’s mournful, wide-eyed innocence. It’s one of those performances that anchors the movie’s more abstract concepts into something you can actually feel. When he’s on screen, the stakes feel immediate. He represents the pressure we all feel—the pressure to "do" something before our time runs out.
The U2 Connection and Pop Culture Footprint
Most people today know the title because of Bono. The U2 track is a masterpiece of 90s alternative rock, and the music video—directed by Wenders—features the band dressed as angels perched on the Victory Column in Berlin.
It’s interesting how the song and the film feed into each other. The lyrics "If I could stay... help me to be not always reaching out" mirror Cassiel’s struggle. He wants to help everyone, but as a human, he can barely help himself. The song gave the film a second life in the MTV era, introducing Wenders' poetic sensibilities to a crowd that probably would never have sat through a three-hour German art film otherwise.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Ending
There’s a common misconception that the movie is a tragedy. Sure, the ending is heavy. Cassiel’s fate isn't exactly a walk in the park. But there’s a deep thread of hope. The movie argues that even a "failed" human life, one spent in struggle and poverty, is worth more than an eternal existence of just watching from the sidelines.
Cassiel’s sacrifice at the end isn't just a plot point. It’s a statement. To be "faraway, so close" is the human condition. We are close to the divine, close to each other, yet always separated by the physical world and our own limitations.
Technical Mastery in a Transitional Era
Looking back from 2026, the way Wenders used the technology of the time is fascinating. He was experimenting with early high-definition video for certain sequences, mixing formats to create a disorienting effect. He wanted the audience to feel the "newness" of the world. It wasn't just about pretty pictures; it was about the texture of change.
The film also serves as a final bow for some incredible actors. Seeing Heinz Rühmann, a titan of German cinema, in his final role as the old chauffeur Konrad is moving. He represents the pre-war memory of Germany, bridging the gap between the old world and the chaotic new one Cassiel is trying to navigate.
How to Watch It Today
If you’re going to dive in, don't watch it immediately after Wings of Desire. Give it some space. Let the first movie settle in your brain for a week. When you do sit down for Stay Faraway, So Close!, try to find the restored 4K version. The colors in the second half of the film are vital to the emotional arc, and older DVD transfers really don't do them justice.
Also, pay attention to the sound design. The way the "angelic" whispers fade out and are replaced by the grinding sounds of traffic and construction is a masterclass in auditory storytelling. It makes you feel Cassiel's loss of his sixth sense.
Actionable Takeaways for Cinephiles
- Watch for the "Flesti" mirror scenes: Every time Willem Dafoe appears near a clock or a mirror, the pacing of the film changes. It's a subtle cue about the loss of eternal perspective.
- Contrast the heights: In the first film, the angels look down from the library or the statue. In the second, Cassiel spent a lot of time on the ground, literally looking up at where he used to be.
- Research the "Berlin Trilogy" context: While not a formal trilogy, watching this alongside Wings of Desire and Wenders' documentary Buchenwald (or even his later work like The Salt of the Earth) provides a massive amount of context on his obsession with memory and German history.
- Listen to the lyrics: Seriously, listen to the Lou Reed and U2 songs in the context of the scenes they appear in. They aren't just background noise; they are diegetic commentary on the characters' internal states.
The film is a reminder that being "human" isn't a status—it's an action. It’s something you have to do every day, even when it’s hard, even when you’re failing. Cassiel might have been a "bad" human by societal standards, but he was a great one by spiritual ones. He stayed close, even when the world tried to push him away.
If you want to understand the soul of the 90s, skip the blockbuster action movies for a night. Put this on. It’s long, it’s strange, and it might make you cry at a picture of Mikhail Gorbachev, but it’s real. It’s a film that respects the audience's intelligence and demands that you feel something deeply. That’s a rare thing these days.
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To truly appreciate the depth of Wenders' vision, start by comparing the two depictions of the Victory Column. In the first film, it’s a place of lonely observation. In the second, it’s a site of active, dangerous intervention. That shift is the story of the 20th century in a nutshell. Get the Criterion Collection edition if you can—the supplements on the restoration process are worth the price alone.